


Even The Broken May Rise

by madderthanahatter



Category: The Amazing Spider-Man (Movies - Webb), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Friendship, No Romance, just peter in the avengers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-23
Updated: 2014-07-23
Packaged: 2018-02-10 03:55:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2010027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madderthanahatter/pseuds/madderthanahatter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the tragic house fire that killed Peter's Aunt May, he is feeling more alone in the world than ever. But that all changes when he meets the infamous genius Tony Stark, who has an offer even Peter can't refuse.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Even The Broken May Rise

It was cold out, and Peter never liked the cold. 

He knew the air was colder the higher he went, but there was nothing left for him on the ground. Besides, after all that fire...he was more than comfortable with pulling his jacket closer in order to avoid thinking about it. But he knew the memories would haunt him in his sleep anyways. Visions of his aunt's cottage-style house engulfed in flames greeted him every time he shut his eyes. He could almost hear the sound of her muffled cries, screaming until the fire silenced her lungs. Peter had gotten there after it was too late to save his Aunt May, but somehow her screams still echoed in his mind. 

He rarely slept these days.

Peter let his head fall back onto the glass skylight of the intricately designed skyscraper. His feet dangled over the edge, but he never feared the idea of falling. Even though everyone he cared about was gone, he still wore the blue and red suit underneath his clothes to prevent others from feeling the same pain.  
Peter reached into his pocket, taking out a Milky Way bar with a slightly battered wrapper. The condition of the wrapper didn't affect the taste of the chocolate, but Peter couldn't make himself finish it.

In the distance, Peter heard the faint wail of police sirens. With a dull sigh he pocketed the rest of the chocolate bar and removed his outer clothing, tucking them into his backpack and shrugging the straps over his shoulders. He pulled on his mask and stepped off the edge, feeling a sudden gust of air push up all around him as he fell. Just before it became too late to turn back, he reached out one arm and triggered the device at his wrist, sending out a steel-strong cable of web to the building across from him. He heard the gasp of the public as they stopped to watch the infamous Spiderman swinging from building to building. Even with his life crashing around him, Peter could never help but smile at how people stared at him with awe. The fact that people looked up to him was still beyond his belief.

He reached the scene and saw a man running down the street, in pursuit by two police officers. He had a dufflebag over one shoulder, which he struggled with as he ran. Peter swung over the man, landing barely five feet in front of him. He quickly snapped his wrists down at the criminal's feet, and a clot of web locked them to the sidewalk. The man jolted forwards at the sudden restraint, the dufflebag flying straight into Peter's waiting arms. He smirked a bit and said, "Pleasure doing business with you," before handing the bag off to one of the officers and making a swift exit.

After pulling on his regular clothes, Peter found himself back at Oscorp. He wasn't sure why his mind had taken him there. He never wanted to return there. This was the corporation that Harry owned, and his father before him. This was the lab that Gwen interned at. He definitely did not want to be there. But he still found that his body was moving forwards, entering the building and supplying the pass he had acquired to get through security. He had no sense of direction as he walked through the labs, peering in at the people busy at work. He heard voices coming through one of the doors that had been left ajar, and mindlessly wandered inside. 

It seemed to be a lecture of some kind, as the room was filled with wide-eyed students sitting in blue folding chairs. The speaker stood behind a podium, his arms laying over the side with a look of indescreet, overwhelming boredom on his face. He was tall with dark hair and sunglasses on, even though he was indoors and the weather outside was overcast.

Peter sat down in one of the chairs at the back and looked up at the man with the tag that read "Tony Stark".

"So you see," he was saying, "Stark Industries is a beneficial supplier of the devices you see here at Oscorp. Nearly 84% of the equiptment used in this pristeen little institution you see here is made by Stark. This aids all of you bright-eyed with such high hopes of a future in genetic engineering and whatever else it is you do here. Now, purely because I was told that peer participation was a part of this lecture and I could not talk my way out of this thing altogether, does anyone have any questions?"

"Have you ever thought of centering your work around medical machinery rather than weaponry?" a girl near the front questioned almost immediately.

"Applying my talents to weapons that lead to a safer country is inflicting the same amount of positive results as it would if I was building CAT scans," Tony answered in a bored tone.

"You called the machinery in your chest an ARC Reactor," a boy stated from the other side of the room. "What is it? Wouldn't that be a medical discovery that could save thousands of lives?"

"It's a lot more complicated than it looks," Tony said in a dismissive tone. "Basically, it's dangerous."

"But _how_?"

"It's a nuclear reactor," Peter suddenly found himself saying. "A generator that keeps metal away from the heart and internal organs. Like a magnetic field made with Palladium."

Tony straightened his back, lifting his chin to look at Peter beneath the edges of his blue-tinted glasses. He raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "How do you know that?"

Peter shrugged his shoulders in a non-committal gesture. "I like science."

"What's your name, kid?"

"Peter Parker, sir."

"Interesting," he muttered, before looking down at his watch. "I've got a plane to catch. Dismissed."

Peter watched as the students rose from their seats, exiting with idle chatter as they exited through the door Peter had entered through. Peter got up from his seat to follow, but was stopped by a hand that grabbed onto his shoulder. Turning back with a startled look, he saw Tony Stark smirking back at him.

"You in a rush?" he questioned. Peter glanced at the door, before shaking his head. Tony dropped his hand and returned it to his pocket to match the other one.

"So are you a science nerd or my biggest fan?" the man asked him.

"I prefer to think of myself as a science enthusiast rather than nerd."

"Amen to that, kid. So are you in school?"

"No, not recently."

"Job?"

"Sort of."

Tony's eyes narrowed, and he was silent for awhile as he stared Peter up and down. Finally, he said, "You're smart. It takes a mind like mine to understand nuclear reactors that are surgically installed into a man's chest. How would you feel about an apprenticeship of some sort?"

"Me working for you?" Peter questioned.

"I know, it's a generous offer. Almost too kind. But I'm in a good mood today, Peter."

"Where would it be?"

"My lab, in Los Angeles. For a kid that gets cold fusion, you're kind of slow."

"But...why would I leave?" Peter stammered.

"You got anywhere else to go, kid?"

Peter swallowed. "How did you know?"

"Call it a superpower," he stated casually. "But if you don't want the offer, I...don't understand at all but I'll assume it's because of something emotional and not at all about me. Well, best of luck to you, Peter Parlour."

" _Parker_."

"That's what I said."

Tony brushed past, heading towards the door without another word. Peter ran his fingers through his hair, his eyes widening as he debated the offer. He squeezed his eyes shut and called out, "Wait."

Tony paused at the door, turning back and raising an eyebrow. He looked impatient, and Peter scrambled to find his words.

"I never said no," he finally said, his voice masked with confidence that in no way mirrored his mind.

Tony smirked. "In that case, we've got a plane to catch."


End file.
